Independent Councillor Brigid Teefy tops poll in Limerick

Independent Councillor Brigid Teefy has become the first candidate elected to Limerick's new local authority.

Poll topper Teefy, who is a native of Ballybricken, could not vote for herself because of the boundary changes, but still received 2,369 first preference votes in the Cappamore-Kilmallock electoral area.

"I had no idea it was going to go this well," she said. "While I felt the campaign was going reasonably well, the change in the boundary was a concern to me. I couldn't vote for myself but people across the road could!"

A founding member of the Progressive Democrat party, Cllr Teefy was elected to Limerick County Council as an Independent at the last local elections.

The mother of four has been a member of the local authority since 2009.

Outgoing Fianna Fáil Councillor Eddie Ryan was also elected in the seven-seater ward, while Sinn Féin has seen its first ever candidate elected in Co Limerick in almost 100 years.

UCC Politics student Lisa Marie Sheehy, aged 20, was also elected after the first count of the Kimallock electoral area.

Speaking afterwards, the new councillor from Glenroe in Co Limerick, whose campaign was only three weeks long, said: "My first aim was don't get eliminated first, but it's really absolutely just phenomenal."

When asked why she joined Sinn Féin, the politics student said it was the most active party on the UCC campus.

"It [The Party] also stands for equality which is what I strive for and that was one of the main themes of my campaign. We want to protect the people that are getting hit time and time again and I think Sinn Féin really capture that."

First count results for Limerick City North and City East are expected in the coming hours.